The Likelihood of Impeachment

Just a little over a month ago, when many of us heard the word Ukraine, we did not associate it with Donald Trump. Now, however, all you see on the news is a call between Trump and the Ukranian president and how this is the ticket to impeach Trump. It feels like impeachment has been on the minds of many Americans for the past three years because of the unconventional things he has done as president, but now there is actually a possibility of him being impeached. Before the Ukraine situation, all that was talked about was Trump’s alleged interaction with Russia while running for president and Mueller's investigation on Trump for this alleged interaction. But Trump is now in the process of possibly becoming impeached because of a conversation he had with the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, this July. 

In their conversation Zelensky asked Trump for an increase in military aid. Trump responded by saying, “I would like you to do us a favor though.” and proceeded to ask Zelensky to investigate the Biden family’s alleged corrupt dealings with a Ukrainian prosecutor. It seems like Trump used military aid as leverage in convincing Zelensky to investigate his political opponent. This is called a quid pro quo, which is a Latin phrase used in English. A quid pro quo is when a favor is given in expect for something in return.

Some people aren't fond of this impeachment process and find it ridiculous. Donald Trump believes it to be the “worst witch hunt in all of American history”.  Most Republican politicians share a similar view and think that this is too small to impeach a president over. They believe Democrats are trying to find any excuse to impeach Trump. Republicans are downplaying the call, while Democrats are doing the exact opposite. 

But what are the chances of Trump getting impeached? The House of Representatives is controlled by Democrats, and in the House, if a simple majority vote to approve an article of impeachment, then the president is impeached. But in the Senate, which is a Republican majority, it takes a two-thirds vote of the Senate to convict. If the president is found guilty, he is removed from office, and the vice president is sworn-in as president. So Donald Trump may be voted to be impeached in the House of Representatives, but it is not likely for the vote to play out the same in the Senate. Many members of the NEST+m community favor the impeachment of Trump and believe he will be impeached. Bishesh ‘21 said, “ Yes, I believe that Trump should be impeached, and we should try all we can. He is very unstable as a president”. Many students shared similar thoughts to Bisesh. But then again, with the support of Republican senators, he likely won't be impeached in the Senate. The chances of impeachment are unlikely because of the current makeup of Congress, but then again, you never know.